Last Friday, President Maduro announced that he would extend the economic emergency powers decree (The same one that the National Assembly did not approve, but the Supreme Court said it did not matter) and announced that he would also decree a state of exception to “neutralize and defeat the external aggression against our country”
Now, you would think that given the importance of such a decree, the Government would have distributed a copy by now, but, no such luck, the details of the decree are unknown. Maduro will apparently issue it taking advantage of the Supreme Court’s ruling on the prior economic power decree, in which the “High” Court simply scratched part of the Constitution (Art. 339 of the Constitution, for example) saying the Assembly did not have to approve the decree.
Some people are calling this a “coup”. I disagree. You can’t have a coup when you already staged one. I can’t even recall when this happened and one could argue when it was. It may have been when Chávez was never sworn in in Jan. 2013, as Chavismo suggested this was simply a “formality”. Or it may have been when Maduro took over from Chávez for the new term, despite the fact that the VP is named by the President and there is no proof that Chávez was even conscious at the time. Or it may have been when the Supreme Court twisted and violated the Constitution dozens of time, just to have the Government get its way.
So many coups and nobody has been counting them, but this was not it!
And the funny thing is that just last week, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister went to the UN to say there was no crisis in Venezuela, no emergency. Funny, no? the President not only extends the economic emergency decree, but also expands it to include a state of emergency.
And it just so happens that during a state of emergency, there can be no public gatherings like those the opposition has been promoting to protest the recurrent delays in the processing of the request for a recall referendum vote against none other than President Nicolas Maduro. Each step of the process has been delayed, over-interpreted and postponed, using vaporous interpretations by the Government-controlled Electoral Board. Which, of course has everything to do with trying to delay a recall vote until after Jan. 10th. 2017, when if Maduro is recalled, his personally-chosen active Vice-President would replace him and complete his term until Jan. 2019.
And thus, the threat is not from the outside, as Maduro wants you or someone to believe, but from the inside: the fear that the opposition will increasingly take to the streets to force a recall vote before the fateful date of Jan. 10th. 2017.
Thus, the guessing game begins as to who the VP will be in January. Opposition lore will have it be current VP Aristobulo Isturiz, “someone we can talk to”. Forget it! Aristobulo does not have the red credentials, nor the trust of Chavismo, precisely because the opposition can talk to him. It will likely be someone who is in the Cabinet, someone Maduro trusts. Perhaps Marco Torre, a loyal former military a perennial Cabinet member. Perhaps better a civilian, Jorge Rodriguez, loyal to Chávez and Nicolas. But who knows? There is still a lot of time before January and maybe not enough people will show up for a recall after that date*.
Stay tuned.
*Maybe I placed too much emphasis on who will replace him, but the more I think about it, the more I believe that there will not be much motivation to change Maduro for someone else. Remember that the opposition needs to get more votes to recall than Maduro got in his Presidential election.
The Devil's Excrement 
May 16, 2016 at 8:20 pm
It’s a misprint:
Decreto de Estado de Excepción y de la Emergencia CÓMICA…
What a bunch of clowns y el pueblo se lo cala. People are busy trying to find bread. That comes first.
May 16, 2016 at 7:59 pm
Someone today claimed they heard the government was going to stop subsidizing gasoline here, as in, the Venezuelan peeps will pay world prices. Don’t know the prices in the US these days, but if it’s $3.00 per gallon, that would work out to about 800 bs per litre at an exchange rate of 1,000 bs to the dollar.
Yeah, that’ll work. LOL
May 16, 2016 at 4:20 pm
Here is the decree:
http://prodavinci.com/2016/05/16/actualidad/lea-el-decreto-de-estado-de-excepcion-y-de-la-emergencia-economica-publicado-en-gaceta-oficial-monitorprodavinci-2/
It is not only to protect the country from external threats, but to protect “the people from the constant attacks of the national right allied with the axis of imperialist power”.
so much for freedom in the country, if you are not Chavista , you are a threat.
May 16, 2016 at 2:48 pm
Time to short China (or Russia) banks?
May 16, 2016 at 4:21 pm
The Chinese money is the biggest one, but it is all the Government,
May 16, 2016 at 10:15 am
What a freaking circus. And people do NOTHING. Except get on line for toilet paper, or bachaqueo. Or Steal, everywhere. Not just the government. The “pueblo” still se la cala, they don’t hit the streets like they did in Brasil, or even Egypt.
Why? Millions and Millions are Enchufados. With special favors and bank accounts. That’s why.
If they were suffering so much with a minimum $12/month salary they would have hit the streets LONG ago.
Sarna con gusto no pica. sometime people get what they deserve, not all byt Millions.
May 16, 2016 at 8:48 am
Here is what Reuters says about China and Venezuela (its short and sweet):
By REUTERS MAY 16, 2016, 5:57 A.M. E.D.T.
BEIJING — An economic crisis in Venezuela is a domestic matter, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday, when asked if the country planned to give aid to the Latin American nation.
The OPEC country, which has received about $50 billion in Chinese financing since 2007, is also struggling with a contracting economy and runaway inflation, following a collapse in oil prices.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has imposed a 60-day state of emergency due to what he called plots by the United States and within his own country to subvert him.
“We hope that Venezuela can properly handle their current domestic situation and safeguard the stability and development of the country,” said Hong Lei, a spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He declined to comment specifically on the situation in Venezeula, however.
Investors have long hoped China would provide financial relief, or at least ease the terms of a major loan pact by which Venezuela borrows money and repays in shipments of oil and fuel. The Venezuelan opposition won control of the National Assembly in an election in December, propelled by voter anger over product shortages, raging inflation that has annihilated salaries, and rampant violent crime, but the legislature has been routinely undercut by the Supreme Court.
Protests are on the rise and a key poll shows nearly 70 percent of Venezuelans now say Maduro must go this year.
(Reporting by Megha Rajagopalan; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
May 16, 2016 at 12:28 pm
Not that it matters, but I thought they were in the hole to China for $75 billion, not 50. And it’s been almost 10 years, maybe more, so is the $50B what they still owe?
Anyway to get an accurate figure on how much is currently owed?
Also, China has its loansharking hand all over the world. I wonder where VZ ranks on that list.
May 16, 2016 at 2:24 am
Reblogged this on How to s..t on humans and commented:
Excellent piece about Maduro’s self appointment as Dictator of Venezuela…
May 16, 2016 at 2:20 am
I would announce that if the dictatorship delays the referendum past mid December the referendum is off. I hear Raúl Castro and the Venezuelan decision makers (which include Cilia Flores, Padrino, Tareck, etc) agree that Maduro needs to be replaced. They are counting on a better manager and climbing oil prices to get out of the hole.
This means the opposition, if it proceeds with the referendum in 2017, will be playing into their hands.
To win this game you do have to accept that you are playing high level chess with Raúl Castro. This is a conflict between Venezuelans and a stealth invasion force which has colonized the country. But you are too proud to face it. What amazes me is that chavismo has given you a rallying cry to unite Venezuelans against a real foreign enemy. This isn’t about imaginary forces sent by uribe from Colombia, this is about real Cuban military and security personnel running Venezuela, and Venezuelans sitting on their behinds ignoring the truth.
If you ever manage to accept what’s going on, then your moves have to be made to isolate Maduro and a few traitorous Venezuelans and the Cuban dictatorship on one side, and the majority of Venezuelans on the other. Once you get the idea, and understand that you do need to use strikes as a weapon, you have a slim chance.
Don’t count on outside help. Obama, the pope, the EU, all of them have demonstrated they are siding with the Castro Mafia. This means you will need a miracle to get rid of the regime.
May 16, 2016 at 12:07 am
Freedom was lost (given away, not stolen) long ago. Actually, traded away is a much more accurate description. In exchange, Venezuela received the promise of a socialist paradise. In fact, I remember hearing Chavez specifically praise the Cuban model and state that this was where he wanted to take Venezuela. Now that you’ve arrived, the people have decided that this isn’t what they want. But it’s much easier to destroy than it is to build. And what has been destroyed will take decades to rebuild – AFTER the country goes through its fire. It’s only now approaching the flames.
The only hope for a speedy remedy is the color ROJO (pun intended). The blood, as Thomas Jefferson so accurately put it, of both tyrants and patriots. Venezuela has an abundance of the former and far too few of the latter.
My third cent: History will judge CAP far worse than Chavez…
May 16, 2016 at 8:02 am
For years I told any Chavista who would listen that the day would come when they realized they’d made a grave mistake, but by then it would be too late. By then they’d no rights (they’d signed them away for a few baubles) and no legal means by which to undo what they’d done.
I believe we’re there today. This referéndum, executed this year, is the last legal means to oust this government. It won’t happen. They’ll run out the clock and there will be nothing anyone can do about it short of dying in the streets.
May 16, 2016 at 1:37 pm
Why do you claim that, when things were so much better then?
A time when the socialist morons went nuts because of a rise in some prices (to pay the bills), and he’s responsible for the violence that followed?
Just trying to understand your rationale, because to me, history SHOULD judge that jerk who pardoned Hugo, simply for political reasons.
But of course, history should be most damaging…and accurately written…to put the blame on the Venezuelan people, who voted for a guy who tried a military coup against CAP.
May 15, 2016 at 9:18 pm
The coup happened the moment Chavez came to power (if not slightly before). He dissolved the congress, supreme court (twice) and hastily wrote an illegal Constitution (Since the old one gave the President no authority to do ANY of those things) then had it run through a Referendum (And he was still writing new stuff into it months later!) Every single shred of the government since then has been illegal. But it’s like an abuse victim who learns to identify with their abuser….after awhile people just accepted it and tried to work within it no matter how many times the new rules changed! And like an abuse victim the Venezuelan people keep being surprised when the new rules turn out to be the same B.S. that has existed since Chavez first arrived. Convinced if they bring the President his beer fast enough that it will be different this time, and when he changes how fast he needed it in his hand and smacks them they act shocked and say how this time they won’t put up with it anymore. But they do…The ones who could break the cycle have left. The people who could have fixed Venezuela are gone along with all of their assets both material and intellectual. Most would never come back, and the ones that would dare will be hounded by the Chavistas if everything isn’t back to the way things were within 1 year.
May 15, 2016 at 8:09 pm
My second post is a duplicate. Feel free to delete if you wish.
May 15, 2016 at 8:06 pm
The votes are there to toss Maduro out and hold new elections. Maduro et al cannot let that happen.
“La Presidenta del TSJ vive en Fuerte Tiuna, en una vivienda que le asignó el Ministerio de la Defensa. Los otros zánganos de la Sala Constitucional han pedido formalmente que el Ministro de la Defensa le asignen una vivienda en ese fuerte porque están asustados”, explicó.
Read more: http://www.notipanda.com/ultimo-momento-la-fuerte-denuncia-ramos-allup/#ixzz48mJr4jlt
The fix is in. The members of the TSJ are looking from protection from the blow-back that is sure to occur when they give Maduro what he wants.
Expect the worst from these criminals. The Constitution means nothing.
May 15, 2016 at 8:04 pm
The votes are there. No one can be worse than the current clown: But tossing out Maduro and getting a new election represents the camel’s nose under the tent against the Chavistas. Maduro knows his days are numbered. What he wants is to select his next in line, just as Chavez did.
My lady tonight told me that the head of the Supreme Court has asked for housing “protection”, in Fuerte Tiuna.
“La Presidenta del TSJ vive en Fuerte Tiuna, en una vivienda que le asignó el Ministerio de la Defensa. Los otros zánganos de la Sala Constitucional han pedido formalmente que el Ministro de la Defensa le asignen una vivienda en ese fuerte porque están asustados”, explicó.
Read more: http://www.notipanda.com/ultimo-momento-la-fuerte-denuncia-ramos-allup/#ixzz48mJr4jlt
Why? Because they’re going to fix this thing regardless of what the Constitution says and want protection from the blow-back.
Expect the WORST out of this government of criminals.
May 15, 2016 at 8:07 pm
“The votes are there. ”
Think again…the number of votes the opo got in December was barely enough to recall Maduro. If I remember right it was like 130,000 votes more. That is too close for comfort in a scenario where another Chavista will replace him.
May 15, 2016 at 8:14 pm
True, but that was December. Miguel, things are FAR WORSE today than they were just 5 months ago. The currency is worthless, there is no food in the markets, and people are getting desperate. This country sits today without grain corn. Think about that. The votes are there to toss him out.
May 16, 2016 at 4:05 am
I agree with Rubio. The situation is far worse.
May 15, 2016 at 7:47 pm
“Or it may have been when the Supreme Court twisted and violated the Constitution dozens of time, just to have the Government get its way.”
What’s one more violation? We’re talking about protecting the “revolution” here.
May 15, 2016 at 7:51 pm
Actually, the more I think abut it, if it is just to remove Maduro and have another Chavista take his place, I dont think the opposition will get the number of votes needed, there will be much less motivation.
May 16, 2016 at 8:11 pm
>>>What’s one more violation?
Reminds me of Luis Herrera. He asked: “What do laws and women have in common? Both were meant to be violated!”
May 15, 2016 at 7:44 pm
Oh yeah, like an article of the Constitution has kept them from doing whatever the fark they wish to do. Come on Miguel, you know better.
May 15, 2016 at 7:07 pm
This one’s a no-brainer. He’ll name the First Combatant as VP and she’ll rule until they can rig the next election.
Cheers.
May 15, 2016 at 7:11 pm
That is explicitly banned by the Constitution. Maybe he will divorce her first… :-). This is the article of the Constitution:
Artículo 238. El Vicepresidente Ejecutivo o Vicepresidenta Ejecutiva es órgano directo y colaborador inmediato del Presidente o Presidenta de la República en su condición de Jefe del Ejecutivo Nacional.
El Vicepresidente Ejecutivo o Vicepresidenta Ejecutiva reunirán las mismas condiciones exigidas para ser Presidente o Presidenta de la República, y no podrá tener ningún parentesco de consanguinidad ni de afinidad con éste.
May 16, 2016 at 12:07 am
That doesn’t strike me as something that would stop, or even slow down the Chavistas. The TS’J’ would simply rule he can do so, and that would be it.